Cyber-physical systems: definition, components, and security
Blog post from New Relic
Cyber-physical systems (CPS) integrate digital and physical realms through sensing, computation, control, and networking, leading to innovations in sectors like manufacturing, healthcare, transportation, and energy. The global CPS market is rapidly expanding as companies adopt these technologies to boost automation and efficiency, with applications ranging from smart factories to autonomous vehicles. CPS is structured in layers, with sensors and actuators forming the perception layer, computational elements as the control layer, and communication infrastructure enabling data exchange. Security is a significant concern due to vulnerabilities that can affect both data and physical operations, requiring specialized protection strategies that span digital and physical domains. Artificial intelligence and blockchain offer promising enhancements in CPS security through advanced threat detection and tamper-evident record-keeping. The future of CPS is poised for further advancement with technologies like quantum computing and digital twins, which promise new levels of autonomy and cross-domain integration, although challenges such as cybersecurity and standardization remain.